Najran forum reviews obstacles to investment

The Najran Investment Forum concluded on Monday discussing a number of vital issues related to developing the industrial and mineral sector and investment in training and education in the region.
Saleh Al-Rasheed, director general of Saudi Industrial Property Authority (Modon), said his organization would establish 200 ready-to-use industries in Najran to promote industrial investment.
Speaking at the forum, Walid Abukhaled, deputy minister of commerce and industry said: “It’s shame that Najran has only 27 industries when total productive industries in the Kingdom reached 6,300.”
Abdullah Al-Mansour of Baha University explained the problems facing industrialists. They include lack of infrastructure and qualified Saudi manpower, rise in cost of conducting feasibility studies and difficulty to get bank loans.
The fourth session, which was held on Monday, cited a number of incentives such as increase in population and growing demand for raw materials for investment in the region’s minerals. Speakers also stressed the need to develop the required infrastructure to develop the sector.
Investors in the sector faces problems such as delay in issuing licenses to exploit minerals, delay in handing over land, lack of infrastructure, difficulty to get loans from the Industrial Development Fund, and difficulty to get visas for the recruitment of qualified foreign workers.
The forum urged the Ministry of Education to solve the problems facing investors in the private education and training sector. “Any problem facing this sector will have a negative effect on other sectors,” said one speaker, adding that lack of educational facilities in Najran would encourage people to migrate to other cities like Riyadh and Jeddah.
Speakers also stressed the need to provide adequate funds to support private educational projects in the region. They said lack of funds was one of the major problems facing industries and small and medium enterprises in the region. They also proposed to make use of Islamic banking and finance to carry out various projects in Najran.
Ahmed Mohamed Ali, president of Islamic Development Bank Group, said the Najran forum would contribute to the overall development of the region. “Our participation in the forum aims at informing businessmen about our various activities, including support for the private sector, guarantee for investment and encourage trade between member countries,” he said.
The IDB chief stressed the importance of holding such forums in different parts of the Kingdom to highlight investment opportunities there in order to attract Saudi and foreign investors. “It will not only boost the welfare of citizens but also strengthen the national economy,” he added.